Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday reassured farmers that the Centre is committed to their welfare and the new farm laws were aimed at boosting their income by giving them alternate markets.

Without directly referring to the farmers’ agitation at the Delhi border over the new legislations, Modi said agricultural reforms as part of government efforts are aimed at removing roadblocks.

He added that the new laws will also bring in technology and investment into the farming sector.

“Reforms will help draw investment in the agriculture sector and benefit farmers," he said at the annual meeting of industry body FICCI in New Delhi. "The aim of all government reforms is to make farmers prosperous,” the prime minister said.

Passed in the previous Parliament session, the new laws will give farmers an opportunity to to sell or buy crops outside their designated mandis, Modi said.

“Farmers have now options to sell their crops in mandis as well as to outside parties,” he said, adding, “While mandis are being modernised, digital platforms are also available to farmers to buy and sell their produce.”

“All these efforts are directed towards improving the farmers' income so that they become prosperous. When farmers prosper, the country will prosper.”

Thousands of farmers from states including Punjab and Haryana have been protesting against these legislations for 17 days now, demanding their repeal. They fear that these laws will prompt the government to stop making direct crop purchases at minimum state-set prices, called minimum support price (MSP).

The government has so far refused to heed to their demand but has promised to continue the MSP-based procurement.

“After the implementation of recent reforms, farmers will get new markets and new opportunities and they will get the help of technology. The country's cold storage infrastructure will become modern,” Modi said.

“From all these, there will be higher investments in the agriculture sector. The maximum benefit of these reforms would be to small and marginal farmers who earn their living from small plots of land,” he added.

Modi opined that the government has taken several steps to reform the agriculture sector.

“Today the agriculture sector has become more vibrant than the past,” he said.

Listing his government's farmer-friendly measures, Modi said the government has encouraged producing ethanol from sugarcane. “This ethanol is blended in petrol to cut India's oil import dependence and gives farmers remunerative prices for their crops,” the PM said.

Modi said farmers will get technology and benefit from access to the market.

Expressing dissatisfaction over the limited participation of India Inc in the agriculture sector, the Prime Minister asked industries to show their interest and increase investment in the sector.

“Unfortunately, the India Inc has not made adequate investments in agriculture and private players did not explore the sector to its full potential, rather they worked in a limited fashion”, he said.

Rural areas offer huge scope for agro-based industries. "Policies of the government are designed to promote rural agriculture based economy," he said. "The government is committed to protect the interests of farmers through its policies and intentions."

Modi said the agriculture sector and allied sectors like agri infrastructure, food processing, and cold chain had been working in silos. "These are being removed."